Oud Musician Fuad Foty Featured on Al Ghad Al Arabi

Nakba Commemoration: The Evolving Musical Narrative

Foty Fusion Band commemorates the 67 anniversary of the Nakba through a musical performance and visual presentation highlighting the historical significance of a series of songs and the Palestine Center/Jerusalem Fund on
May 15, 2015

Oud Musician Fuad Foty Featured on Al Ghad Al Arabi

Return to Ramallah: A Palestinian-American Story

Director of Film Ziad Foty – Fundraiser for First Feature Film at Busboys & Poets

April 23, 2014

“Ziad Foty, a DC native and Palestinian-American filmmaker is working on a new feature-length film which with follow his father, Fuad Foty on his first return home to Ramallah, Palestine after 40 years of life in America. For years, Fuad has had a deep desire to return to Ramallah but fear of safety has kept him from home, until now. As the American Federation of Ramallah, Palestine, a Palestinian American organization has planned its upcoming annual convention in Ramallah for the first time ever, Fuad is determined that this time he will return home. This June 2014, Ziad will be shooting the Palestinian segment of this feature length documentary, incorporating the journey of other Palestinian Americans who for many like Fuad Foty, this will be their first times back home in decades. This event will feature musical performances by local DC artists including Fuad Foty, the Palestinian musician and singer featured in the film, and his family. The trailer for the film will also be shown and a short question and answer session about the film will take place.”

The Sound of Memory: The Story of a Palestinian’s Return to Ramallah

Director of Film Ziad Foty featured in Barakabits article by Lena Kassicieh

January 18th, 2015
By Lena Kassicieh

“Research has proven that sound is closely tied to memory. Alive Inside, a documentary made by Dan Cohen, experimented with music as a platform for memory triggers for Alzheimer’s patients. The music played was at some point familiar to the patients, and allowed them to reconnect to memories seemingly and subconsciously forgotten due to their disease. Music has the remarkable ability to remind us of experiences we may have forgotten, buried deep within a subconscious realm. Ziad Foty, a Palestinian-American understood this, and yearned to create a poignant, music-inspired documentary about his father, Fuad Foty who finally returned to the West Bank after 40 years away.

Return to Ramallah narrates as Fuad, a musician who currently resides in Washington DC, finally revisits his native Palestine in June 2014. His story, which will resonate with the many Palestinians who left their home, began shortly after the 1967 war, when his family uprooted to the US. The Oud, a key instrument in Arabic music, functioned as a form of emotional coping for Fuad; a way to process the acute violence he witnessed as a young adolescent. Through his music, Fuad expresses a distinct sense of pride and connection to his homeland that, despite the years and miles that separated him, remained intact.

To help fund the documentary’s various travel and crew expenses, Ziad created a crowdfunding campaign in 2014. An eloquently told, poignant story of that ethereal feeling of disconnected belonging, the documentary also weaves in the journey of countless other Palestinians who, like Fuad, left their country behind, only to return years later to a much different place.

For more information: Visit the Return to Ramallah film’s official website, and like their Facebook page.”

Regional Filmmakers Bridge Divides and Shatter Illusions

Director of Film Ziad Foty featured in The National’s article by Jack Shaheen

November 1st, 2014
By Jack Shaheen

“Given the success of up-and-coming Arab and Arab American filmmakers, I ask festival organisers around the world to encourage and support image-makers who want to produce a major feature film exploring how this barrier blocks the road to meaningful peace.

Other stories continue to tumble from the region. Palestinian-American Ziad Foty is working on a documentary, Return to Ramallah: A Palestinian-American Story. The film follows his father, Fuad, on his return to Ramallah after 40 years of life in America.”